Play Dig Dug: Namco's Underground Classic Online Free

Dig Dug is one of the most iconic arcade games of all time, brought to life on the NES by Namco. Players control Taizo Hori (Dig Dug) as he tunnels through the earth to eliminate underground monsters. Use your air pump to inflate Pookas and Fygars until they pop, or strategically drop rocks to crush them for massive points. Be careful—Fygars can breathe fire through the soil! The game’s catchy soundtrack and addictive gameplay have made it a favorite for generations. With 256 levels of increasing difficulty, Dig Dug is the ultimate test of strategy and timing. Can you clear the screen and set a new high score?

Game Overview

Namco's 1982 arcade classic came to the Famicom in June 1985, published by Namcot. You play the digger later given the name Taizo Hori, tunnelling underground with nothing but an air pump: inflate the monsters until they burst, or undermine the rocks above them and drop a boulder on their heads.

Core Gameplay

There are two enemy types - Pooka, the round red creatures in yellow goggles, and Fygar, the green dragons that breathe fire - and Fygar only exhales horizontally, so bursting one lengthwise is worth double points. The pump takes three or four squeezes to pop a monster, and if you let go partway it slowly deflates, which is useful: a half-inflated enemy is held in place, perfect for parking under a falling rock. Drop two rocks in a stage and a bonus item appears in the middle of the screen for extra points. The deeper underground you burst something, the more it scores, and the last enemy on each round tries to escape off the top left of the screen.

Japanese Version Specifics

This Famicom release was Japan-only. North America and Europe never got a cartridge version during the NES's entire commercial life, and the port did not reach the west until the Wii Virtual Console in 2008. It is otherwise a very faithful conversion: the sky is black instead of blue and the sprites are slightly simpler, and the arcade's signature touch is intact - the music stops dead the moment you stop moving. Two players can take turns. Beyond the title screen and the score there is essentially no text in the game, so the Japanese version presents no language barrier at all.

• Two enemy types: Pooka, the goggled red ball, and Fygar, the fire-breathing green dragon worth double if burst horizontally
• Three or four pumps to pop a monster, and it slowly deflates if you stop halfway
• Rock drops score 1,000 for one kill, 1,500 each for the next two and 2,000 for every one after that
• Half-inflating an enemy holds it still, ideal for parking it under a falling rock
• Drop two rocks in a stage and a bonus item appears in the centre of the screen
• The deeper you burst an enemy, the more points it is worth; the last one runs for the top-left corner
• Faithful to the arcade quirk where the music stops the instant you stop moving